Aug. 17, 2013

Written by

Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

Just as the Detroit Police Department was staging a recruitment fair today, cops already with the department were busy gathering evidence from numerous shootings over the weekend, including three fatal ones.

Inspector Lashinda Houser, who set up the career fair, said the first two applicants were in line Saturday by 6:45 a.m. for the 10 a.m. event at the new police headquarters in downtown Detroit overlooking the Lodge Freeway. Applicants came from across the tri-county area, other areas in the state, and a few from outside Michigan, Houser said. The goal is to fill 60 openings quickly and seek funding for more “in the near future,” she said.

“I’m certainly excited about 653 candidates applying for positions with us,” Chief James Craig said. In February, the city allocated funds for 60 new police jobs, the chief said.

But little was done about seeking recruits because “we just had inept management and didn’t move forward on it,” he said. A new police academy class of 20 recruits has been in training since July 22, but more recruits are needed soon, Craig said, moments before talking to reporters about a rash of recent shootings.

At least 12 people have been shot since Friday, including three fatally shot in separate incidents in the first three hours of Friday morning, according to news releases.

Asked about the shootings, Craig said, “I’d like to focus on our successes. We can talk about shootings but we’re responding to them in a real-time way, and we’re going to solve a lot of these cases.

“And remember, we still have a 5% reduction in homicides overall, year-to-date. So, we’re going in the right direction,” he said.

Craig was to appear at roll calls at two precincts Saturday night and have a news conference on the shootings, Sgt. Eren Stephens said. He spent some time Saturday taking in the Woodward Dream Cruise.